Well in general, if a company is barely making money and is pressing against the budget, that's always a cause for concern. Who knows with hockey though? Some owners are fine with not making a killing because they love the team and the sport.

For the blues, they lost 6% compared to last year. That could easily be the difference between making the playoffs and not making the playoffs.

I think the tax increase you're refering to is tax on capital gains.

I figured this, though this most likely won't be the case for the Blues.